FBI BK 8.8.24

Dear FOIA Officer:

You are receiving this correspondence as a request under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. subsection 552. I am requesting the following:

Copies of all Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) records, documents, and communications responsive to Burton Wallace Kanter (August 12, 1930 - October 31, 2001). Mr. Kanter was a Chicago-based tax lawyer and business partner of Paul L. E. Helliwell (100-347094), and throughout his career, he was associated with figures involved with organized crime like Morris "Moe" Dalitz (92-3068) and Morris Kleinman (92-5345). The Bureau investigated Mr. Kanter and his associates at various points between the 1960s and 1980s: Bureau file 92-HQ-5345 Serial 6 contains a report dated July 21, 1966, which details a trip taken by Mr. Kanter and Mr. Helliwell to Puerto Rico to meet with Mr. Kleinman about a business arrangement.

There is no expectation of a violation of Mr. Kanter's privacy, as he passed away in 2001. A copy of his Chicago Tribune obituary, dated November 2, 2001, is attached.

I am asking you waive any fees associated with this request. I am a member of the news media. My bylines, which include Unicorn Riot, Covert Action Magazine, and the Geopolitical Economy Report, can be found in both print and electronic publications, and I am sending this request in coordination with Muckrock, an award-winning and nationally-recognized news organization. Please take note of the Office of Management and Budget guidelines published March 27, 1987 (52 FR 10012) that include electronic publications and other nontraditional publishers as representatives of the news media.

A fee waiver is appropriate in situations where "disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations and activities of the government, and is not primarily in the commercial interest of the requester,” 5 U.S.C. § 552(a)(4)(iii). This request would contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations and activities of government with regard to the FBI's handling of the Watergate investigation. Mr. Kanter and Mr. Helliwell were joint owners of a Bahamian offshore bank, the Castle Bank and Trust, that was featured in the Watergate Special Prosecution Task Force's investigation of financial connections between Howard Robard Hughes Jr., owner of the Hughes Tool Company and other businesses, and Charles Gregory "Bebe" Rebozo, an associate and financial advisor to former president Richard Nixon. Per records in the Hughes/Rebozo collection at the National Archives and Records Administration, the Bureau (along with the Internal Revenue Service) provided investigators with background information on the Castle Bank and Trust in the period of 1975.

This request is not being made for commercial purposes.

All documents will be provided to the general public without charge.

In the event that there are fees, I am willing to pay up to $100. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

I look forward to your response within 20 working days, as the statute requires. If access to the records I am requesting will take longer, please contact me with information about when I might expect copies or the ability to inspect the requested records.

If you deny any or all of this request, please cite each specific exemption you feel justifies the refusal to release the information and notify me of the appeal procedures available to me under the law.

Sincerely,

Robert Skvarla, Jr.